Video essayist and culture critic Mina Le muses on the return of sex appeal in major Hollywood films in her study, “Is Hollywood Sexy Again?” 2024 saw racy and salacious pictures like Challengers, Babygirl, and Anora, all of which garnered critical acclaim. Le argues the resurgence started even earlier, namely with 2023’s Saltburn. She contextualizes this sex renaissance within Hollywood history, illustrating how the 2010′ bred particularly prude content.
Le cites paranoia from studio executives after the #MeToo movement as a potential cause for sexless media. During the #MeToo era, actors and entertainment professionals opened up about experiences of sexual misconduct and abuse in the industry. This shift was ultimately a net positive, exposing a seeming tide of malpractice and encouraging vigorous support for those harmed. However, industry elites grew fearful of new accusations. Rather than attempt to create an environment that is not conducive to abuse, they avoided the subject altogether.
This brings us to the advent of intimacy coordinators (ICs). The role of the intimacy coordinator is to ensure an open line of communication between actors, the director, and the crew regarding intimate and “love” scenes. Duties range from choreography, providing special garments to act as physical barriers, or advocating on behalf of the cast and crew. They aim to reduce the likelihood that sexual misconduct or harm can occur on set.
Performers and the public express mixed feelings about intimacy coordinators. Sam Levinson’s Hulu original series The Idol pokes fun at an uppity IC in its first episode. Gwenyth Paltrow recently made headlines after commenting that she finds their presence “stifling.”
Anora star Mikey Madison has discussed not using an intimacy coordinator for her sexual and nude scenes in the film. She was presented with the option to bring one in, but she decided, alongside her costar, to keep the team as small as possible.
On the flip side, many actors remain unperturbed, emboldened even, by having an intimacy coordinator onset. Sydney Sweeney of Euphoria success has many hot-and-steamy scenes across her projects. The actress has been vocal in her support of intimacy coordinators, stating they ought to be a requirement on every set.
I am weary of too-cool-for-school critiques of intimacy coordinators. Claims that they are overbearing or they dilute the artistry of a scene. While professional coordinators should understand how and when to step in without interrupting a delicate process, having that protection in place allows performers to engage in a scene free of anxiety.
Furthermore, criticisms of intimacy coordinators often fail to acknowledge their duties beyond advocacy and communication. They block movements to heighten the realism and give performers advice on appropriate bodily reactions. Not to mention, the cast is not the only consideration.
For instance, if consenting actors are totally down to get it on, even for real, there is an entire crew of individuals in the same room who might not be interested in watching. However, there are a plethora of reasons why letting actors do anything for real is a bad idea. It is unpredictable, hard to replicate for identical takes, and creates distractions on time-sensitive shoots. Not to mention there are specific mandatory health code guidelines on productions of that nature.
In the case of Anora, a film that openly explores the life of a sex worker, we might accept that it would be ideal for those involved to be comfortable with the subject matter. Of course, we cannot speak to the agency or lackthereof many industry professionals have in choosing projects. But on projects where sex is more or less tangential to the primary plot, we cannot enforce the same level of comfortability.
Intimacy coordinators can help sway important narrative choices as well. With the ability for actors to advocate for or against the inclusion of certain scenes, we might see less blatant gratuity. Gratuitous scenes are understood to serve no functional purpose in a plot, but are inserted simply to be hot. There is nothing inherently wrong with desiring saucy scenes with attractive players; the success of Bridgerton is a famous example of tasteful yet titillating storytelling.
Issues arise when censorship entities regard all sexual content as equal. As Le points out in her essay, she would rather her teenagers watch the series Sex Education over Euphoria. Both are teen-centered dramas exploring the sex lives of high school students, but the way in which they go about their explorations could not be more opposite. Yet, they are rated similarly on streaming platforms.
Moral judgments against one version of intimate content over another becomes a more complicated conversation. However, the different ways in which we portray intimacy onscreen and who that content is created for are important considerations. And the existence of these competing portrayals is testament to a return to sexiness. It is clear intimacy coordinators played a role in this renaissance in helping curate a comfortable work environment.